Sunday, November 7, 2010

I adore cheesecakes but don't bake them too often because of (a) the fat content and (b) fear of The Terrible Cracking (sounds like a Halloween tale, doesn't it?). Let's be really honest with each other...it's mostly (b) that's kept me away. But when my friend Yida (check out his kickass Halloween costume) requested blueberry cheesecake cupcakes for his birthday, it was time to get past (or around) the fear and I thought I'd found a great way to do just that.

Several sources told me mini cheesecakes were less prone to cracking, even without a water bath. You can bet I was excited 'bout that! Still, there was some contradicting advice floating about. The Martha Stewart recipe I adapted called for bathing the cupcakes ^_^, but Annie's Eats got gorgeous results skipping that step. Always wanting to see for myself, I baked some with a water bath and some without.

When the cakes in the water bath turned out slightly undercooked but the others rose high and sunk oh-so-low, I went in search of middle ground. Google led me to this page very helpfully explaining The Cracking/Sinking Phenomenon. The main culprits: over-beating, over-baking, and contraction as the cake cools. Shortening the mixing time and lowering the oven temperature without a water bath produced the results I was hoping for. Firm, delicious cakes without a tendency to cave in. Sure, there's still an occasional crack along the marbling, but people will be too busy wolfing them down to notice =).

Do you guys enjoy cheesecake as much as I do? I'd love to hear about your favorite variations. Plus any tips would be great, as I'm still very new to making them!

XIAOLU'S NOTES: For a lovely almond-y twist, replace half the graham cracker crumbs with amaretti biscuit cookie crumbs and omit the extra sugar in the crust. Or use chocolate wafer crumbs and keep the sugar. You could also easily swap out the blueberries for almost any other berry or even other types of fruit. You'll want to adjust the amount of sugar according to the sweetness of the fruit you use. Have fun with it!

To make crusts: in a small bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and sugar. Stir together with a fork until well blended and all dry ingredients are moistened. Press 1 tablespoon of the mixture into the bottom of each cupcake liner. (A small glass or another standalone baking cup work well.) Bake until just set, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees F.

To make the fruit puree: combine the blueberries and sugar in a regular or food processor or using a stick blender in a measuring cup. Process until smooth, and set aside. If using frozen berries, boil the puree in a small saucepan for about 5 minutes to evaporate some of the water; then cool and set aside.

To make the cheesecake: beat the cream cheese on medium-high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer just until smooth. Blend in the remaining sugar until well incorporated. Mix in the salt and vanilla. Finally, beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

To assemble: spoon 3 to 4 tablespoons of the cheesecake batter over the crust in each cupcake liner. Dot a 1/2 teaspoon of the berry puree in a few dots over the cheesecake filling. Use a toothpick or a skewer, chopstick, or thin knife to lightly swirl and create a marbled effect.

Bake until the filling is just set, about 20 to 30 minutes. (They will look puffed initially but will return to normal with time.) Transfer to a wire cooling rack and let cool to room temperature. Transfer to the refrigerator and let chill for at least 4 hours before serving.

55 comments:

They look so cute :) i adore the combinaton of cheese and blueberries :) i love cheesecakes :) i baked a few of them and none of them cracked :) and i absolutley adore the taste of a cheesecake with forest fruit :) ohhh, i love them all :D

Unfortunately I don't have any tips for you as I've also stayed away from cheesecakes for the same reason! I think your post would be my go to for tips on how to make them look delicious - especially with the swirls!

I love your scientific approach to solving the problem. And the swirling is a great way to disguise any minor imperfections (although I don't see any on yours, gorgeous!). My experience has been that single-serving cheesecakes tend to behave better just because they cook more quickly and evenly by virtue of their size. Since cheesecakes are a type of custard (all those eggs), I would still probably bake a large one in a water bath. Anyway, the age-old cracking dilemma never ends, does it?

I've found that in general, baking cheesecakes at lower temperatures for a longer time helps to prevent cracks... And yes, making sure you don't over-bake them of course! I like your solution here, the minis look cute and tasty. :)

Yummy....these little mini's look wonderful. Usually when I get cracks in my cheesecakes I just zip some chocolate or caramel drizzle across the top...possibly sprinkle on some chocolate covered nuts....cracks what cracks!

First of all, your friend is awesome! I wanna be his friend too :-)Cheesecake is my weekeness too and for me thrs a third reason not to make it... my lazy rear!Love your cupcakes and adore the cute swirls on it!

I think I've made four cheesecakes in my life, three with water baths and one without...none of which have cracked. Should I ever encounter a cracked cheesecake though I plan on covering it strategically with berries. In a very artistic, aesthetically pleasing way. These sound delicious!

I was much of a cheesecake baker, but lately that has changed! I especially like Donna Hay's recipes that combine cream cheese and ricotta - yum!I'll be trying this variation you posted, Xiaolu - that swirl is just too beautiful and I'm a sucker for blueberries!

the only ones I tried were the oreo mini cheesecakes (delicious). but your more fruity version looks like a painting and must taste great as well. I'll think I'm going to make me some mini cheesecakes for my birthday bash (high tea) again...so many great ideas.

Yum! Those look divine, they're beautiful (I can't see any cracks) and they sound delicious!The only variation of cheesecake I make is a pecan-praline version. I'll have to post the recipe sometime :-) And I'll have to try your mini version - so much nicer!

I have to say that I've never had a cracked cheesecake before, which I guess means I've been incredibly lucky in unintentionally selecting recipes that don't have a propensity towards cracking! I highly recommend Nigella's London cheesecake - I've made that multiple times and it has always worked perfectly and the taste and texture are perfect. This is the Americanised version of the recipe (I think she used Digestive biscuits in the original). http://www.wchstv.com/gmarecipes/londoncheesecake.shtml

These look SO good. I LOVE cheesecake! I just made, today, some Pumpkin Cheesecake. I adapted my recipe from a Paula Deen recipe. I'm nervous to see how they taste. They did sink a little. I normally stick to my plain ole NY cheesecake and just top it with different things. Caramel Sauce is probably my fav topping. :)

The little cheesecakes look delicious. I can't say I worry about the cracking one bit. I do tend to put a thin layer of sweetened sour cream on top of most cheesecakes I've made, and it covers up any cracking. Plus, it tastes good. :)

For some reason mini cheesecakes seem so much easier and less time consuming to make than a regular cheesecake though they're not really! I love the look of these little ones you made. I love pretty much all cheesecakes (except chocolate based ones). I made this lemon one which has lemon curd on top that was really good: http://www.eatmedelicious.com/2008/12/lemon-cheesecake.html

Ommm nommm nomm nom! I want to eat these right now! I love mini cheesecakes! I have a beautiful recipe for citrus flavoured mini cheesecakes on my blog www.tickle-your-tastebuds.blogspot.comThey are really nice. As yours would be!